"Magpie" Katharine Weber explores family dynamics

SYDNEY (Reuters Life!) - You might not be able to judge a book by its cover, but with a proliferation of fiction on the shelves, American writer Katharine Weber says it is important to have eye-catching artwork to get your work noticed.

Weber's latest and fifth novel, "True Confections," has a cover that resembles a bar of chocolate which is fitting for a story about a family owned-and-operated candy factory struggling to compete with the corporate giants.

Weber, a New Yorker whose debut novel was published as she turned 40, is now writing a memoir which includes her memories of her maternal grandmother, songwriter Kay Swift.

Since Swift's death in 1993, Weber has been a trustee and the administrator of the Kay Swift Memorial Trust, which is dedicated to preserving and promoting her music.

Weber spoke to Reuters about writing:

Q: So people do judge books by their covers?

A: "Yes. If they pick it up and walk with it to a counter there is a chance they will buy it. The thing about a novel is that you only publish every two or three years and you drop it into the stream that goes past at that time. I don't think a great cover could save a horrible book but a beautiful cover that has the right sensibility for a book is a wonderful advantage."